Question about "breading"

[LindaSue]

Tonight I'll be making some "breaded" chicken cutlets coated with a mixture of almond flour and very fine coconut. I can either dip the chicken in beaten whole egg or just egg whites.

My question is: What would the difference be in the final product? I'm wondering if I'd get a crispier coating using only the whites. I've had good luck breading chicken by dipping it in whole beaten egg then in almond flour and parmesan cheese, but I've never tried just the whites.

Please share your thoughts and experiences on this.

[Kaos0100]

The last time I fried chicken, I only dipped it in parmesan cheese and Carbquick. And all the breading fell off the chicken. Could it be because I didn't dip it in egg first? Usually I do, but didn't this time for some reason.

[SCOTTSDALEJULIE]

I dip mine in LC milk and then the "flour"

[Charski]

I often use just the white, beaten up - it seems "stickier" to me somehow! I like it for prawns - seems to me though that I use the whole egg for chicken - hmmmm, maybe just because that's the way my mother did it??

It would be an interesting experiment to do some one way and some the other and see if there's any difference! (hint hint hint....LOL!)

Char

[LindaSue]

I ended up using just egg whites and it worked great. I think whole egg would have been too heavy for the coating I used.



COCONUT CHICKEN
3 thin boneless chicken breast cutlets
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 egg white, beaten until frothy
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut, finely ground, 1 1/4 ounces *
1/2 cup almond flour, 2 ounces
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/4 cup oil, for frying

Mix coconut and almond flour in a shallow bowl. Cut each breast into 2 pieces; season with salt and pepper. Dip in egg white, then in coconut to coat on both sides, pressing gently to coat them well. Sprinkle with a little additional salt, if desired. Chill an hour or so until just before cooking time to allow the coating to set up. Fry in hot oil in skillet until golden brown and chicken is cooked through. Serve with a dipping sauce, if desired.

* If you use NOW brand medium unsweetened coconut, it's already fine enough.

Makes 3-4 servings

Per 1/3 Recipe: 444 Calories; 33g Fat; 32g Protein; 5g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 2g Net Carbs
Per 1/4 Recipe: 333 Calories; 25g Fat; 24g Protein; 3g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 1g Net Carbs

[GinaT1213]

Linda

That looks delish as always! Ok I am going to ask a dumb cooking question...how do you get just the egg white and no the yolk when you crack it?

[Chasintrail]

Easiest way to separate eggs (kinda' icky though): Break the egg into your hand, separate your fingers a little and let the white run through into a bowl.

[LindaSue]

Originally Posted by GinaT1213

Linda

That looks delish as always! Ok I am going to ask a dumb cooking question...how do you get just the egg white and no the yolk when you crack it?

I use an egg separator. Mine looks like this,



but, you can can find a hundred different styles in a kitchen store. You break the egg into it and the yolk gets trapped in the center and the whites fall through the holes.

[Deannie]

That looks wonderful. I'll give them a try when the weather cools enough to cook indoors again. Thanks for the recipe.

[cabrioluvr]

LindaSue would you consider coming to my house & cooking all my meals?? Honest to goodness your food looks fabulous!!!

[SCOTTSDALEJULIE]

Linda Sue, what did you use for the dip. It looks wonderful. Julie

[LindaSue]

Originally Posted by SCOTTSDALEJULIE

Linda Sue, what did you use for the dip. It looks wonderful. Julie

CHUTATIP'S PEANUT SAUCE
3 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons red Thai curry paste
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon cumin
3/4 cup skinless unsalted peanuts, 3 ounces *
13.5 ounce can coconut milk
2 tablespoons granular Splenda or 1/4 teaspoon liquid Splenda
2 tablespoons lime juice, 1 lime
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste

Grind peanuts in a food processor until dry and crumbly; not quite to peanut butter consistency. Heat oil in a large skillet; add curry paste and fry on medium heat until fragrant, but do not let it burn. After about 30 seconds or so, whisk in the dry spices and fry briefly. Add all but the lime juice and salt and whisk until smooth. Bring to a boil and cook a few minutes until slightly thickened. Season to taste with the lime juice and salt. Serve warm as a dipping sauce with Chicken Satay.

Makes about 2 cups

* I could only find lightly salted peanuts, but they worked fine and I still added the full teaspoon of salt. I ground my peanuts until they were like a very thick, coarse peanut butter, but Chutatip says they should be more dry and crumbly. My sauce is still good, but next time I will try to get it the way she suggests.

Per Tablespoon: 56 Calories; 5g Fat; 1g Protein; 1g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 1g Net Carbs
Per 2 Tablespoons: 111 Calories; 11g Fat; 2g Protein; 3g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 2g Net Carbs
Per 1/4 Cup: 223 Calories; 22g Fat; 4g Protein; 6g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 4g Net Carbs

[SCOTTSDALEJULIE]

Thanks, Lindasue. I will definately be trying that recipe. Julie